Fragment One

Upon opening the door, Bai Cai was genuinely surprised to find herself facing Dianya directly.

This afternoon, Dianya was still wearing a lace dress, similar in style to a formal gown, seemingly preparing to attend a banquet.

The pure white skirt is long and elegant, with intricate layers of pleats that resemble waves, and it naturally tapers at the waist, making her look much slimmer than usual.

Instead of ankle boots, she wore round shoes with long socks beneath her skirt. Her slender, delicate hands were also adorned with gloves, and her cheeks were flushed with a rosy glow. She was radiant and beautiful; in short, she was very pretty.

To be honest, there are quite a few aristocratic students in the academy, but Bai Cai has almost never seen anyone dressed like this.

Male students, such as Xu Sanshi and Dai Huabin, rarely dress so formally, and female students, including noble ladies like Ning Tian and Zhu Lu, also rarely wear makeup.

First, formal attire restricts movement and can easily lead to mistakes in combat. Second, formal attire is expensive, and damage during combat is considered normal wear and tear. Third, it affects the effects of Soul Skill; once encountering water or fire Soul Skill, smoke, fire, and mist will obscure the surroundings, rendering any makeup useless.

The other noble ladies who were sought after might not be less beautiful than Dianya, but for the reasons mentioned above, they were far less stunning.

Of course, Bai Cai's surprise was not because of this attire, but because of the reason why Dianya had come dressed up so formally.

"A banquet is about to be held at the manor; if you would be so kind as to..."

Dianya removed her gloves, her bare, soft hand extending in invitation, "Shall we go together?"

"Why are you asking me about this?" Bai Cai asked, puzzled. "The Belun Family doesn't seem to lack talented young men."

Dianya didn't speak. She raised one hand and slowly lifted the Bai Cai's palm, while pressing down with the other hand, pressing it tightly against the back of the Bai Cai's hand.

The back of my hand was like solidified cream, soft and delicate, while the area below my palm was smooth and subtly warm.

Her cheeks were flushed with a slight blush; her skin was exceptionally fair, with a pale pink hue, like apricot blossoms.

Her lips were moist, like peach blossoms; her pupils were pale purple, like bellflowers; her light brown hair reached her waist, softening some of her glamour and adding to her radiance.

The Belun Family and other families certainly have many talented young people, but Dianya did not inform any of them. Instead, she went directly to visit Bai Cai, her actions almost explicitly indicating her intentions.

A straight shot hit the bullseye, Bai Cai froze instantly, almost stopping its thinking.

Affected by this, the Sea of Consciousness surged, Ice Empress instantly manifested human form, looking up and asking, "Xue'er, is this kind of thing normal among humans?"

"Bing'er, I'm not human either, so I don't really know about these things."

The Snow Empress also manifested in human form and replied in a low voice, "However, if a choice must be made, perhaps, perhaps..."

From an aesthetic point of view, most Soul Beast tend to be of the same kind, unless they possess dragon blood, and are indiscriminate in their choice of race or species.

Of course, there are always exceptions, such as Ice Empress, Bi Ji, and a certain third Heavenly King of the Far North.

Ice Empress's race is Ice Jade Scorpion, and she likes Snow Empress; Bi Ji Princess's race is Emerald Swan, and she likes Di Tian.

After a question-and-answer session between Ice Empress and Snow Empress, Bai Cai finally came to her senses.

It's impossible for someone to fall in love at first sight and confess their feelings so directly, given that only a few days had passed since they met.

Dianya definitely doesn't like herself that much, at least not to the extent of a direct confession.

The Bai Cai was clearly recognizable; Dianya remained unusually calm, showing no signs of directly confessing her feelings.

In other words, whether she refused or agreed, Dianya had already made preparations beforehand.

So rational, so composed, completely unlike someone in love.

Ross seemed to have said something like, ' Dianya is a genius girl from the Skywater Academy; the nobles who come to propose to her have more barrels than wineries have.'

In light of this statement, which coincided with the martial law imposed on Belun, the true reason for the direct confession has become clear.

With her consent, Dianya could avoid harassment. Even if she encountered some trouble, because she was relatively unfamiliar with Tiania, possessed extremely high talent, and was unknown to Tiania, the nobles and Soul Master who pursued her would not dare to be too Power Trip for a while, lest they encounter Bai Longyu.

If the two parties get along well, it's possible that their fake relationship could become real. If they still have no intention of getting along, as travelers, it's unlikely they'll meet again after leaving, thus avoiding any entanglements later.

If she refuses, Dianya will inevitably face a lot of harassment at the banquet, perhaps from nobles or Soul Master. Considering her family, she will find it difficult to withstand this pressure.

If they agree, they can infiltrate Belun's inner circle and perhaps find a way to turn things around. If they refuse, they may remain safe or offend Dianya.

After weighing her options carefully, and glancing at Dianya again, the girl patiently awaited an answer. Her pale purple eyes were pure and clear, without a trace of gloom, as if she were only asking for something.

Bai Cai stretched out her other hand, "Want to prove it?"

Money, local specialties, even confidential information—anything is acceptable, but even if you plan to hire child laborers, you cannot delay paying their wages.

The girl glanced at it, her expression unchanged, then half-squatted down, slowly raising the hand and gradually bringing it closer to her left cheek.

Soft and delicate, hot to the touch—this distance, this shyness, already proves there is absolutely no malice.

There seems to be a slight difference between the two sides regarding the method of proof.

Attending a banquet, especially a formal one, naturally requires formal attire. However, Bai Cai had never bought such clothes before and could only ask Dianya for advice.

Practical training is plentiful in academies; how can you fight while dressed in formal attire?

Furthermore, Bai Cai doesn't usually associate with aristocratic students, so she has no need to buy anything from them.

As for now, it's too late to place a last-minute order. The clothing stores are located inside the city and are under martial law, making it difficult to enter or leave. Even using special channels, it would be too late for a round trip.

Fortunately, the manor still has a number of men's formal attire stored in it, such as the formal wear worn by the previous patriarch when he was a boy.

Dianya quickly found a dress, blue and purple in color, covered with gilded patterns. It was one of the Present the previous head of the family received when he turned twelve, and it was quite eye-catching when worn.

The boys are all about the same size; with a few minor modifications, they can wear it to an evening banquet.

Of course, she also needed to tidy herself up a bit, get a haircut and trim her eyebrows. Dianya dismissed the servants and took charge of the task herself.

The young girl carefully dressed up the Bai Cai, as if dressing up a doll. Her smooth fingertips repeatedly brushed against the exposed skin, without any hesitation or guard, relaxed and serene.

My fingertips brushed against my ear again, and a delicate fragrance filled my nostrils.

Dianya was very close; the Bai Cai could almost hear her heartbeats, two heartbeats that almost overlapped.

Is this an illusion, or is it real?

She tried to speak, but ultimately didn't ask anything; Bai Cai fell silent for a moment.

What does it matter if it's just a charade or if it's genuine?

In a few years, the Sun Moon Empire will launch an attack. On the battlefield, the strong prey on the weak, and Soul King, Soul Emperors, and even Soul Emperors will be cannon fodder.

At this moment, indulging in romance and poetry, they become cannon fodder on the battlefield.

A young fish leaps out of the river and sees that the end is a waterfall. How can it continue to drift with the current?